Roll heater



Nov. 18, 1930. J. D. WILLIAMS ROLL HEATER Filed Oct. 24. 1928 4Sheets-Sheet l Nov. 18, 1930. J. D. WILLIAMS ROLL HEATER Filed Oct. 24,1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Nov. 18, 1930. J. n. WILLIAMS ROLL HEATER FiledOct. 24. 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Nov. 18, 1930. J; D. WILLIAMS ROLL HEATERFiled Oct. 24, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 .H TTOHNEYS w l TNESS Patented Nov.18, 1930 PATENT OFFICE JOHN D. WILLIAMS, OF NILES, OHIO ROLL HEATERApplication led October 24,1928. Serial No. 314,570.

The present invention relates to heaters intended for heating the rollsof sheet mills preparatory to their beingr utilized for rolling sheetsor the like.

For satisfactory rolling of certain kinds of sheets and other articlesit is necessary to preliminarily heat the rolls of the sheet mill to arelatively high temperature which, after the mill is placed inoperation, is substanti- :llly automatically maintained by the passageof the hot sheets therethrough. Various forms of apparatus intended toeffect this preliminary heating have been proposed but all of them, sofar as I am aware, are open f to certain disadvantages under practical'conditions of operation among which may be mentioned uneven heating ofthe rolls, inability to heat the rolls to substantially the sametemperature from their surfaces to their centers or cores so thatundesirable strains are set up within the rolls, relatively long periodsof time required to bring the rolls to the desired temperature and,particularly in the case of those classes of roll heaters utilizingelectricity as the heating medium,

relatively high cost of operation.

It is therefore an object of my invention to provide a roll heater notopen to the oregoing, disadvantages and which, therefore, is

'.atisfactorily operative to evenly and thoroughly heat the rolls to thedesired temperature in a minimum period of time.

Other objects of my invention are to provide a roll heater of convenientform, which may be readily operated by unskilled labor,

ably less than when electricity instead of gas.

is employed and to provide a roll heater of relatively inexpenseconstruction and of such character that it is not liable to be damagedor get out of order under the conditions of operation to which devicesof this character are necessarily subjected.

Other objects, advantages and novel features of construction andarrangement comprehended by my invention are hereinafter morespecifically mentioned or will be apparent from the followingdescription of certain forms of roll heaters constructed in accordancetherewith and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

As will hereinafter more fully appear, my improved heater is designed tosimultaneously heat at least one pair of rolls disposed one above theother and continuously rotated during the heating operation, preferablyonly one of the rolls being driven and the other roll being rotatedthrough frictional engagement with the driven roll, the central portionsor barrels of both rolls being enclosed or substantially enclosed in acasing, comprisin complementary sections which are separa le to permitthe introduction and removal of the rolls, and into the bottom of whichheat is directed to thence pass upwardly about the rotating rolls so asto heat them prior to its exit from the top of the casing, means beingpreferably provided for adj ustably directing the heat against the rollsurfaces so that the heating effect of the hot gases upon the rolls maybe controlled and regulated as desired.

With this general reference to the nature ofthe apparatus, reference maynow be had to the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a top planview of one form of roll heater embodying the principles of my inventionand showing a pair of rolls operatively disposed therein, and Fig. 2 isa side elevation thereof. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the apparatusshown in the preceding figures and Fig. 4 is a similar view showing thetwo complementary casing sections separated or opened outwardl to theposition which they occupy when tiie rolls are being inserted or removedfrom the heater; in this figure the lowermost roll is shown in operativeposition and the upper roll being lowv ered into operative position orremov therefrom which operations are conveniently for thehousing'containin'g a 4reduction drive accomplished by means of a chainhoist or gear 3 of any suitable form connected other like device notshown. Fig..5 is an end through a silent chain 4 or in anv other suit-View, generally correspondin to Fig. 3, 0f able Way with a motor 5disposed on the base another form of heater embo ying the prinor on asupport 6 adjacent thereto and which ciples of my invention, the casingsections supplies the power for rotating the rolls being shown inoperative position in full through the reduction gear. Adjacent onelines and in dotted lines in the positions ocend of the base is disposeda pair of longicupied during the insertion or removal of tudinallyspaced, transversely extending the rolls. Fi 6 is a fragmentary end viewbeams 8, 9 which assist in tying the beams of a heater o the form o fthat shown in the or stringere 1, l together and also Serve as firstfour figures and illustrating QOIIVGII- supports for the lower ends offour uprights ient manner of adjusting or arranging the which arearranged in longitudinally spaced heater for use in heating rolls ofsl1ghtlyless\\pairs on 'Opposite sides' of the Center line ef diameterthan those for which it iS 110111121115 the machine. The lower -ends ofeach pair of' intended. The same symbols are used to desuprights arevery. rigidly Secured t0 the ignate similar parts in the Several fgUfeScross beams.V 8, 9 while the up er ends of the Considered generally,both of the forms of pair of uprights 10, 10 are ieg together by a rollheaters shown in the drawingscoinprise thm-Od -11 andthe upper ends ofthe other a base B upon which is supported all or a airof-u ri hts 12 12similarl tied toofether portion ofthe'mechanism for driving thev E p g yo y a tie-rod 13. The .uprights thus form an rolls Ra R' which, When inOPelatVe P051' open frame for the reception of the rolls R,

non, efedlspesed one above the other ad* R', and for affording verticalsupport .to the )acent one end of the-base. Beneath the IOHS former orbottom roll bearing brasses 15, j16 1S dlSPPSed e furnace generallydeslgneted 'are disposed on transversely extending sup- .eS Fi 1n Wnlenefe burned the geses fl`0ln porting members 17 mounted on the cross nlenthe neet, for neetlng thefells 1S (lebeams 8, 9, the brasses beingpreferably rlved Wnnenbove and commnnlcal'ln Wltn hollowecl out on theirupper faces so as to the fnl'neee 1S arranged e easlngwlne sul" roperlyreceive the necks N of the lower roll stantially surrounds the rolls andthrough Each brass is desirably provided at its Whlen the heated gesesfrom the furnace ell" inner end with a flange 18 which lies betweenenlete by eenveetlen about the r0llS end the adjacent end face of thebarrel of the roll nnelly eSeePe from the top' of elle easlngand theinner ends of angle plates 19 which T0 enable the rolls ,te be Placed lnand l`e` are mounted on the supporting members 17 moved from elle eeslnthe lettera as Prevl'- and prevent the brasses from shifting lateroSlyStated, '1S prefere ly lnede ln two c ol'n' ally. These angle plates arepreferably so Plelnenlaly OPPOSltely dlsllesed. Sectlens arranged thatthey can be adjusted in or out, yvhleh ln the form 0f the lnvenlnonShown that is, longitudinally of the machine, so as ln lgsl tevla areI`eSPeel31Vely Plvoted neel' to accommodate the latter to rolls havingthen' l0Wel`-endS on horlzontalpwots when?" barrels of different widths;for this purpose by the secl'lonnmay be swung ouliwa'rdlynn thehorizontal portion of each plate may be Opposlte dlrecuons when 1t 1Sdennen to 1n' provided with a series of holes 20 and the uptroduce orremove the rolls, while 1n that per Hanges of the Supportingmemberswhich fonm of tn e invention shown in Fig' 5 the are desirably inthe form of I-beams, with casing sections are mounted on rollers runningon horizontally disposed tracks to enable the sections to be separatedfor a like purpose by moving them outwardly in o posite directions. Asthe casing is made o relatively light material and simply encloses therolls without affording any support thereto, means are also provided forrotatably supporting the rolls one above the other as well as meansadapted tol effect a suitable driving connection between one of therolls and the driving mechanism together with other means andinstrumentalities hereinafter more particularly described whichcontribute to and facilitate the satisfactory operation vof the heateras a whole.

Referring first to the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 to 4, thebase B may comprise a pair of laterally spaced longitudinally extendingbeams 1, 1 upon which is disposed a platform 2 which serves as a supportcorresponding holes so that by shifting the angle plates in or out anyof the holes therein may be aligned with a hole in the adjacent supportand a bolt or pin passed through both holesA so as to hold the angleplate in position. This arrangement is a convenient one but any othermeans adapted to permit the requisite adjustment of the angle plates andto secure them invadjusted position may be employed if desired. It willthus be apparent that when the flanges 18 are engaged with the end facesof the roll barrel and the angle plates in turn adjusted so as to bearagainst the outer faces of the flanges. the roll is prevented fromlongitudinal or axial movement.

For preventing the roll from shifting laterally or wobbling during itsrotation, bearing blocks 21 are arranged lto bear against the necks ofthe roll R substantially in the plane of its horizontal diameter. Theseblocks may be supported between angle plates 22 secured to the opposedinner faces of the uprights 10 and 12 as best shown in Fig. 3 and may beslid longitudinally into place after the roll is lowered onto thebrasses 15. 16 and may be either of wood or metal.

Similar bearing blocks 25 are arranged to bear against the necks of theupper roll R', and these blocks are preferably arranged for adjustmentlby means of adjusting screws 26 extended through the flanges of theadjacent uprights so that after the upper roll is lowered into place andrests upon the lower roll its axis may be brought into exactparallelismV with the axis of the lower roll by suitable adjustment ofthe blocks so that when the rolls are rotating, as hereinafterdescribed, the surfaces thereof will roll truly together Without anyrelative slipping or dragging of one over the other which wouldnecessarily occur if the axes of the rolls were not in parallelisln.A Ifdesired guide strips 27 may be disposed adjacent the inner faces of theuprights to prevent the bearing block supports from being battered bythe necks of the rolls when the latter are being lowered into or removedfrom the machine as well as to assist in guiding the rolls intoposition.

In the forms of the invention which I have chosen to illustrate thebottom roll alone is driven and the upper roll is rotated merely throughfrictional engagement with the lower roll upon which it rests. The driveof the bottom roll under these circumstances is effected from a mainshaft 3() to which motion is communicated through the reduction gear 3and which is secured to a drive shaft 31 upon which is slidably mounteda sleeve 32 terminating in a cylindrical head 33 properly recessed inits outer end to receive the wobbler or cross shaped extremity 34 of thelower roll R. The head 33 is desirably supported on a block 35 having acurved upper face so as to diminish the friction between the sleeve andthe drive shaft which in the absence of some supporting means for theoverhanging head would be excessive and prevent the sleeve from beingreadily slid along the shaft` and the sleeve and head are constrained torotate with the latter by a key 36 or other suitable device. Forsliding' the sleeve along the shaft so as to engage or discngage thehead from the wobbler of the roll when required, any suitable means areprovided, as, for example, a lever 37 pivoted to a bracket on theplatform 2 and having a yoke encircling sleeve 32 and carrying pins 38engaging in a groove in the sleeve so that by throwing the lever one wayor the other about its pivot the sleeve may be moved along the shaft ineither direction. While the movement of the lever may be effected byhand' I prefer to employ for the purpose fluid operated means comprisinga cylinder 39 mounted on the reduction gear casing and enclosing apiston carrying a piston rod extending to the lever so that by admittingfluid to one end of the cylinder or the other the piston may bereciprocated therein to move the lever in the desired direction.

As hitherto stated the rolls while being heated are substantiallyenclosed within a casing which is ,operative to cause the heated gasesadmitted to the bottom thereof from the furnace F to circulate about therolls. In the form of apparatus now being described, this casingcomprises two complementary oppositely disposed sections generallydesignated as C, C respectively pivoted near their lower extremities onhorizontal pivots 40 carried in brackets 41 mounted on supportingmembers 42 extending longitudinally of the base. As the sections aresubstantially similar, a description of one will suffice for the other.Thus, each section which is preferably made of sheet metal. comprises anouter wall v43 which from its lower end adjacent the pivots 40 extendsvertically to a point somewhat above the plane of the axis of the lowerroll, is then curved inwardly in substantial conformity with thecurvature of the adjacent upper quadrant of the lower roll but on asomewhat greater radius than the latter, is then curved outwardly andagain inwardly in substantial conformity with theadjacentsemi-cylindrical surface of the upper roll but similarly on anarc of greater radius than the latter and finally terminates in theVertical plane passing through the axes of the rolls. all as best shownin Fig. 3. It will therefore be apparent that when the casing section isin closed position as shown in said figure it will generally conform tothe adiacent surfaces of both rolls but is spaced therefrom for arelatively considerable distance, thus providing a passage 44 throughwhich the heated gases can pass upwardly. For substantially closing thesides of the passage and preventing the escape laterallv of the heatedgases therefrom, end plates 45 and 46 are provided and secured to orformed integral with the outer wall of the section, these plates heiligso formed that their inner edges will hug the adjacent surfaces of therolls fairly closely when the casing is closed yet with suflicientclearance to prevent engagement of the plates therewith. In practice andas shown in the drawings this clearance may be relatively considerablewithout permitting the escape of an undue amount of the heated gasesbecause as the latter tend to rise vertically by convection so as toescape from the top of the casing through an outlet 48 provided thereinby cutting oppositely disposed openings in the outer walls of the twosections at their upper ends, there is but relatively little tendencyfor the gases to escape laterally from the casing.

'1`o minimize heat losses by radiation I prefer to provide the casingwith an inner wall 43 paralleling but spaced from the outer wall for ashort distance and to pack the space between the two walls with suitablelieat insulating material 49: similarly inner end plates might beprovided and a packing of like insulating material arranged between themand the outer plates as will be readily apparent, but as the heat lossesby radiation through the end plates are substantially negligible the useof such inner end plates and packings may generally be dispensed with.

For holding the casing sections in fully closed position as shown inFig. 3 or partially opened out position, suitable means are providedwhich may comprise a plate 50 hinged at its inner end to the outer wallof the casing section as at 50 and extending outwardly therefrom in agenerally horizontal direction. This plate is provided with a series ofholes 51 adapted for the passage of a removable pin 52 which may be engaed in any one of a corresponding series o holes in a subjacent plate 53carried by a bracket 54 extending around the adjacent casing section andsecured at its ends to the adjacent uprights 10 or 12 as the case may beas best shown in Fig. 1. The plate 53 also acts as a stop to limit theamount which the casing sections can be rotated outwardly about theirpivots to the extent necessary to permit the introduction or withdrawalof the rolls, thus obviating the possibility of the machine beingdamaged by a careless operator who, in the absence of some means forlimiting the outward movement of the sections, might allow them to fallagainst the floor with consequent injury to the sections themselves or,more particularly, the heat deflecting mechanism now to be described.

As hitherto stated the heated gases from the furnace F are introduced tothe bottom of the casing and pass upwardly therein over and about therolls, and in order to cut down the velocity of the gases and insuretheir proper impingement against the rolls to secure the maximum heatingeffect of which they are capable, I provide each casing section with aplurality of transversely extending adjustable vanes 55 which aremounted along their outer edges on horizontally extending pivot rods 56journaled 1n the end plates 45, 46 in such manner that rotation of thepivot rods will swing the vanes to different positions with respect tothe adjacent surfaces of the rolls toward which the free or inner edgesof the vanes are directed. The vanes are disposed at intervals, oneabove the other, in each casing section and the pivot rods are extendedthrough the end plates 45 and each provided exteriorly thereof with anarm 57; these several arms project beyond the outer wall of the casingsection and are pivotally connected together by a series of links 58 andone of the arms 57, conveniently the lowest arm, is extended to beyondits point of connection with the adjacent link to form a handle or lever59 which is provided with a hole 59 adapted to register with any one ofa series of holes 60 formed in a verticall disposed uadrant 61 carriedby and extending outwar ly from the casing so that by inserting a pinthrough the hole 60 and any one of the series of holes in the quadrantthe lever 59 ma be held in any position of rotational adjustment. Itwill thus be apparent that by moving either lever 59 all of the vanes 55controlled thereby may be simultaneously turned about their respectivepivots so as to modify to some extent the direction of travel of thecurrents of heated gas passing through the casing and insure theirimpingement upon the roll surfaces.

Each casing section is desirably provided with an inspection opening inits outer wall which may be closed by a sliding door 65 and also with aconveniently positioned handle 66 to facilitate movement of the sectionfrom open or closed position or vice versa.

The furnace F comprising a hearth, side and end walls, 'is disposedbeneath the casing and between the beams 1, 1 and cross beams 8, 9 ofthe base and is constructed of brick or other refractory material andprovided with an arched roof 70 extending over the combustion chamber71. In this chamber, which is relatively low, are burned the gases,desirably coke oven gas, introduced thereto through a high pressureaspirator 72 or in any other suitable way, the flow of gases to thechamber being controlled through the medium of a thermostati'c valve 7 3interconnected with a pyrometer 74; the pyrometer in turn may beconnected with either or both of a pair of pyrometer tubes 75 extendedthrough the casing section at any convenient point. This arrangement isa convenient one for automatically maintaining a substantially constanttemperature within the casing but any other means for effecting asimilar result may be utilized if desired.

For admitting the heated gases to the casing sections from the chamber71 the furnace roof 7() is rovided with suitably disposed ports 77 am?in order to cut down the velocity of the gases after their entrance intothe casing and prevent direct impingement of the flames upon the rollsurfaces I provide above the ports deilecting screens 7 8 which arepreferably though not necessarily supported independently of the casing,for example, by supports 7 9 extending from and carried by the furnaceroof.

While it is believed the operation of my improved roll heater will bereadily'apparent from the foregoing description of that form thereofshown in Figs. 1 to 4, brief reference will now be made thereto asfollows: Preparatory to placing the heater in operation the casingsections are opened out to the position shown in Fig. 4 and the slidingsleeve on shaft 31 moved to the left when viewed as in Fig. 2 so as toretract the head 33. The roll R is then lowered into place between thecasing-sections so as to rest on the bearing brasses 15, 16 which, ifrequired, may be adjusted in or out so as to prevent longitudinalmovement of the roll and the bearing blocks 21 slid into position. Theupper roll R is then lowered into place so as to rest on the lower rolland its bearing blocks also inserted and adjusted if necessary so as tobring its axis into parallelism with the axis of roll R. The casingsections are then closed together about the roll and secured in positionand the sliding sleeve moved to the right so as to engage the head 33with the wobbler of the adjacent roll neck of the lower roll. Theapparatus being now in condition for operation, the motor 5 may bestarted so as to positively drive the bottom roll and cause rotation ofthe superjacent roll through its frictional engagement therewith, andthe gas admitted to the furnace and burned therein with the result thatthe products of combustion pass upwardly into the casing through theports 77 and over and about the rotatlng rolls, the velocity of thegases and their direction of movement being controlled if required bysuitable adjustment of the vanes 55. Through the action of the pyrometerand thermostatic valve the temperature within the casing is maintainedsubstantially constant, desirably at about 700 to 800 F. whichordinarily requires a temperature of from 1600o to 1800D F. in thefurnace, and under these conditions a pair of sheet mill rolls of usualsize may be brought to the proper temperature in about eight hours afterwhich the gas is shut olf, the motor stopped and the rolls consecutivelyremoved from the heater after the head 33 has been disconnected fromroll R and the casing sections separated to open position. It isofcourse desirable 1n the interests of economy to shut off the gas andremove the rolls as soon as they have been properly heated, but ifthrough inattention of the operator or the like the heat 1s left on'fora longer time than that actually required for this purpose no harm canresult to the rolls as they simply remain substantially at the maximumtemperature to which they have been raised and which 1s below the pointwhich would result in 1n]ury.

In that form of the invention to which reference has heretofore beenmade the casing sections are arranged to rotate about horizontal pivotsfrom open to closed posltion and vice versa. In the form of theinvention shown in Fi 5, however, the casing sections are arrange toslide outwardly in opposite directions and for this purpose are providedwith small wheels 90, 91 respectively mounted on brackets 92, 93 carriedby each casing section adjacent the end plates 45, 46, these wheelsbeing slidable on tracks 94, 95 secured to the uprights and extendinghorizontally outwardly therefrom in opposite directions. Thus when it isdesired to separate the casing sections the latter maybe respectivelyslid outwardly along the tracks to the posi- \tion shown in dotted linesin Fig. 5 and may thereafter be as readily moved inwardly to closedposition as shown in full lines in the said figure. Under certainconditions this arrangement may be preferred but ordinarily the pivotalmounting of the casing sections will be found more convenient and lessexpensive as well as resulting in reduction of the floor space requiredby the heater.

Ordinarily the curvature of the inner edges of the end plates of thecasing is designed 'to properly accommodate rolls of given diameter sothat if turned-down rolls or other rolls of smaller diameter are to beheated the clearance between their surfaces and the end plates of thecasing 'may be increased to a point at which an excessive amount of heatwould escape therethrough. To obviate this and thereby satisfactorilyadapt the heater to the heating of such rolls, I may provide auxiliaryend plates 100 which can be temporarily attached to the permanent endplates of the casing in any convenient way as by bolting or screwingthem thereto, these auxiliary plates being so shaped that their inneredges will project beyond the corresponding edges of the end plates andthus partially ll up the gap or clearance between them and the surfacesof the smaller sized rolls, as shown in Fig. 6. As these auxiliary endplates are readily attachable and removable, they may thus be utilizedwhen and as desired.

It will be observed that in accordance with my invention the heat isdirectly applied to the central portions of the rolls only and,consequently, any heating of the necks of the rolls is necessarily duesolely to conduction; therefore the roll necks always remain matcriallycooler than the barrels or central portions of the rolls and underordinary conditions do not attain a temperature materially exceeding 300when the barrels of the rolls are at a temperature of from 700o to 800.Additionally, the heating of the rolls proceeds inwardly from theirsurface-s and is substantially uniform from said surfaces clear to theroll cores, tests having shown variations of but a very few degreesbetween the temperature of the metal at the centers of the rolls and attheir surfaces, while, moreover, the temperature of the latter issubstantially uniform throughout their extent. The result is that whenthe rolls are removed from the heater and placed 1n the mill, properrolling conditions are immedlately obtained so that the first sheetsrolled are fully as satisfactory and embody as l1ttle scrap at theirends as the sheetsturned out after the mill has been in operation forseveral hours.

While the heaters which I have hereln 1llustrated and described aredesigned to heat but a single pair of rolls at a time, 1t will bereadily apparent I may arrange the roll casing and associated parts toaccommodate more than two rolls in superposed relatlon, thus enablingseveral rolls, as, for example, two pairs thereof, to be heated at thesame time in each casing, and furthermore that to double the capacity ofthe heater I may provide a furnace, roll casing and associated partssuitable for heating two or more rolls at each end of the base insteadof at onl one end and extend the main driving sha from the reductiongear in opposite directions, as indicated in broken lines in Fig. l.

While I have herein described and illustrated with considerableparticularity certain forms of roll heaters embodying the principles ofm invention, I do not thereby desire or inten to specifically llmitmyself thereto or to any precise details of design, construction andarrangement of the various parts as numerous modifications and changesmay be made therein if desired without 1n any way departing form thespirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I

` claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States:

1. A machine for heating rolls comprising a base, a furnace adjacent thebase adapted to supply heat for heating the rolls, a casing supported onthe base and adapted to receive a plurality of rolls disposed one abovethe other, means for conducting the products of combustion from thefurnace to the lower part of the casing, means extending from the basefor rotatably supporting the rolls within the casing and independentlythereof, and means for positively driving at least one of the rolls.

2. A machine for heating rolls comprising a base, a furnace disposedadjacent one end of the base and adapted to supply heat for heating therolls, a casing carried by the base and comprising two oppositelydisposed complementary sections located above the furnace and adapted toreceive a plurality of rolls disposed one above the other, means forconducting the products of combustion from the furnace to the lower partof the casing, means for rotatably supporting the bottom roll, means forrotatably holding the superjacent roll in axial alignment with thebottom roll,

and means carried by the base operative to positively drive at least oneof sald rolls.

3. A machine for heating rolls comprising a base, a furnace disposedadjacent one end of the base and adapted to supply heat for heating therolls, a casing carried by the base and comprising two oppositelydisposed complementary sections located above the furnace and adapted toreceive a plurality of rolls disposed one above the other, each casingsection eing relatively movable with respect to the base, means forconducting the products of combustion from the furnace to the lower partof the casing, means for rotatably supporting the bottom roll, means forrotatably holding the su erjacent roll in axial alignment with thebottom roll, means carried by the base operative to ositively drive atleast one of said rolls, an means for controlling the course of theproducts of combustion in their passage through the casing and abouteach of the rolls therein.

4. In a machine for heating rolls, a supporting base, a casing adaptedto receive a plurality of rolls, said casing being formed in oppositelydlsposed complementary sections, means adapted to su port the casingsections on the base and opera le to permit the sections to be openedoutwardly in opposite directions to allow the insertion or withdrawal ofthe rolls, means for rotatably supporting the rolls within the casingand means for supplying heat to the lower part of the casing.

5. In a machine for heating rolls, a supportlng base, means carried bythe base for rotatably supporting a plurality of rolls one above theother in horizontal position, means for ali ing the axes of the rolls, acasing adapte to substantially surround the rolls and generallyconforming thereto but spaced therefrom, said casing being formed ofseparable sections respectively supported on the base and eachrelatively movable outwardly with respect thereto to permit the rolls tobe lnserted therein and withdrawn therefrom, means for directing heatedgases into the casing below the rolls, and means for positively rotatingat least one of the rolls.

6. In a machine for heating rolls, a supporting base, means extendingfrom the base for rotatably supporting a plurality of rolls one abovethe other in horizontal position, means for aligning the axes of therolls, a casing adapted to substantially surround the rolls andgenerally conforming thereto but spaced therefrom, said casing beingformed of separable sections respectively supported on the base and eachrelatively outwardly movable to permit the rolls to be inserted thereinand Withdrawn therefrom, means partially housed within the base fordirecting heated gases into the casing below the rolls, means forpositively rotating at least one of the rolls, and means operable toadjustably vary the course of the heated gases through the casing andabout the rolls.

7. A machine for heating rolls comprising a base, means carried by thebase for rotatably supporting a plurality of rolls one above the other,means for driving at least one of the rolls, a casing adapted tosubstantially surround the rolls and embodying two complementaryoppositely disposed sections respectively supported on the base, eachsection comprising an outer wall extending parallel to the faces of therolls but spaced therefrom and end plates extending toward the rollsfrom the outer wall and having their inner edges in relatively close butspaced relation from the roll surfaces, said sections being respectivelyr'novable oppositely outwardly to permit insertion or withdrawal of therolls, means for holding the casing sections in closed position aboutthe rolls, means, partially disposed within the base for directingheated gases into the lower part of the casing, means for permittingsaid gases to escape from the top of the casing, and means for adjustably varying the course of the gases through the casing and abouteach of the rolls.

8. A machine for heating rolls comprising a base, means extending fromthe base for rotatably supporting a plurality of rolls one above theother in contact with each other, means for driving the bottom roll, acasing adapted to substantially surround the rolls and comprising twooutwardly separable complementary sections each having an outer wallextending parallel to the rolls, generally conforming to the adjacentsurfaces thereof and spaced therefrom to form a passage between the walland the rolls and end plates directed inwardly from the sides of saidouter walls toward the rolls and havingtheirinner edges disposed closelyadjacent but spaced from the roll surfaces, means for independentlysupporting each of the casing sections on the base and adapted to permitmovement of each section toward and away from the rolls, means formaintaining the sections in closed position about the rolls, meansartially housed in the base for supplying eated gases to the lower partof the casing. means for permitting the escape of gases from the upperend of the casing, and adjustable means for controlling the course ofthe gases through said passage.

9. A machine for heating rolls comprislng a base, means extendingupwardly from the base for rotatably supporting a plurality of rolls oneabove the other, means for positively driving at least one of the rolls,a caslng formed of two oppositely disposed complementary sectionsadapted to substantially surround the rolls, each section comprising anouter wall extending parallel to but spaced from the rolls and endplates directed inwardly from said wall toward the rolls and havingtheir inner edges enerally conforming to the surfaces thereof, removableauxiliary end plates adapted to be secured to the first mentioned endplates to decrease the normal clearance between the inner edges thereofand the rolls, means independently supporting each section of the casingon the base and operative to permit the sections to be moved outwardlyin opposite directions to enable the rolls to be inserted in orWithdrawn from the casing, means for holding the sections in closedposition about the rolls, and means partially housed within the base forsupplying heated gases to the lower part of the casing to circulatetherein about the rolls.

10. In a machine for heating rolls, a casing comprising two oppositelydis osed complementary sections adapted to su stantially surround therolls, each section comprising an outer wall and laterally spaced endplates extending inwardly therefrom toward the rolls, and auxiliary endplates adapted to be secured to the first mentioned end plates todecrease the normal clearance between the inner edges thereof and therolls.

11. In a machine for heating rolls, a casing formed of two oppositelydisposed complementary sections adapted to substantially surround therolls, each section comprising an outer wall extending parallel to butspaced from the rolls and end plates directed inwardly from said walltoward the rolls and having their inner ed es generally conforming tothe surfacestiereof, and removable auxiliary end plates adapted to besecured to the first mentioned end plates to decrease the normalclearance between the inner edges thereof and the rolls.

12. A machine for heating a rolling mill roll, comprising a base, acasin supported on the base and comprising complementary sectionsadapted to be opened outwardly to permit the roll to be heated to belowered to heating position, means carried by the base for rotatablysupporting the roll when in Said position, means for driving the roll,and heating means beneath the casing and extending into the baseoperative to supply heat to the interior of the casing for heating theroll.

In witness whereof I have hereunto hand this 20 day of October, 1928.

' JOHN D. WILLIAMS.

set my

